Daschle Pick Illustates Difficulty Integrating Change And Effectiveness

As the New York Times pointed out, the rumored pick of Tom Daschle, former majority leader in the senate and current unofficial lobbyist, shows the fine line the Obama administration is trying to walk by hiring experienced Washington insiders to execute the policy of "Change". Mr. Obama is pulling heavily from the Senate and the former Clinton administration to staff his administration. Some had hoped that Mr. Obama would appoint people with unconventional backgrounds to his cabinet, something that so far has shown no signs of occurring. There is also some conflict between Mr. Obama's strict restrictions on previous lobbying, and some of the people he would like to be in his government, something long predicted by insiders.

The core issue will revolve around how strong of a leader Mr. Obama will be. If he is willing to set the agenda, and define how his subordinates will carry it out, he may be able to carry out his idea of "Change" with a cabinet full of establishment types. However, if he wavers in exactly what he wants to do, or does not enforce his will strongly, the result will be typical establishment proposals, policies and results.